DBZ belongs to Akira Toriyama, FUNimation, and a couple of others who aren't me.

_This_ is emphasized, ((this)) is a thought. **************************************************************************** ****

Dragon Ball Z the Movie 14 The Lady Kari by NansJns

Ch.3: Battle on Kari's Ship - Wake Up, Saiyans!

Kari set the open music box down on a table in a small room of her ship. The Saiyans stood behind her, still entranced to the melody. Their eyes were empty, their faces slack, and they were oblivious to everything around them except the box. Kari smiled at them wistfully.

"So, this is it. The entire Saiyan race, in this one room. A race of millions reduced to these few bloodlines. It's rather sad and pathetic, don't you think?" she tilted her head a bit as she studied the men and boys before her. After a few moments of silence, she scratched her temple and shrugged her shoulders. "Yes, well, you'll be much more talkative once I close the box. Which I won't be doing anytime soon, mind you!" she smirked a bit. "That's right; I know somewhere deep inside you can still hear me, even if it doesn't effect you. I'll close the box as soon as we're far enough away from that planet that you can't just run back there. We have much to discuss, gentlemen. Much to discuss."

Kari turned her attention specifically to Trunks. She knelt down so she was almost eye level with him, and gently stroked his hair. "Hm, quite possibly the rarest of the rare here, a blue-eyed, fair-haired Saiyan. You have a lot of your mother in you; she must have some tough genes. It works very well, though. . .your father's face with your mother's eye color and hair," she studied the soft, purples strands of hair between her fingers for a few moments before continuing. "I'm not sure where you got this color, though. . .your mother's hair looked blue-green to me." She glanced over at Goten and Gohan next. "As for you two. . .you almost look like clones of your father. I don't see any of your mother in you. Unless she has black hair and eyes too," Kari sighed as she straightened up. "At any rate, it doesn't matter now. . .odds are, you'll never see those women again. I'm a little s-" Just then, there was a small knock on the door, and the blue-skinned soldier that had stood with Kari when she kidnaped the Saiyans opened the entryway.

"My Lady Kari? Sensors have picked up another ship approaching us. We think it's from Earth," the soldier reported.

"What?! Damn! How. . .?!" Kari spat in annoyance. "All right Creem, keep track of it. If it looks like it'll over take us, we'll prepare to confront them." Kari sighed deeply, and turned back to the captive Saiyans.

"Yes, Ma'am!" Creem nodded, but didn't move. "Um, Ma'am? May I ask a question?"

"Certainly, Creem. What is it?" Kari glanced at her lightly.

"Well. . .why did we kidnap the Saiyans? Why didn't we just talk to them? I'm sure that once they knew that you. . ." Creem started, but Kari cut her off.

"DON'T be sure of ANYTHING when it comes to Saiyans. They're unpredictable creatures. Besides, they seemed very attached to that planet, and those women," Kari tapped her chin with one long, tapered fingernail.

"But. . ." Creem started again, but Kari waved her off.

"All in due time, Creem. For now, we have other concerns. I'm heading to the bridge," Kari said as she turned to leave.

"What about them?" Creem glanced at the Saiyans warily.

"Relax. They can't do anything if I don't tell them to, not while the box is open. And what you're going to do is stay here and be good boys," Kari giggled a bit as she gave her instructions to the hypnotized group. ((Oooh, they'll be mad at me when they wake up.)) Kari thought as she left the room. That little comment probably dented their prides, a dangerous thing when it came to Saiyans. Not to mention everything else she had said to them. Creem hesitated.

"Please," she said to the unmoving men and boys, "don't think badly of her for this. Lady Kari was just desperate, you see. . .she's. . ." Creem faltered for a moment. "Never mind. You'll understand everything soon enough," she sighed and left, locking the door behind her. The Saiyans were left trapped in their own minds, struggling to break free of the music that drowned out their control. Try as they might, though, their bodies would not respond to the mental commands they gave. It was like being trapped in blocks of ice.

"There! That's the ship!" Chi-chi snapped when they spotted Kari's ship on the view screen. She was a little nervous, she hadn't gone into real battle for years. She thought about all of the fights her family had been in while she just stood off to the side and fretted. Not this time; this time, _she_ would save _them_. She could almost see their smiling faces in the glass of the window by her seat. Her beloved Goku, her first son Gohan, and little Goten, who looked just like Goku as a little boy. Her husband and sons. She would never forgive herself, or this Kari, if anything happened to any of them.

"Goku and the others are all still on it, I can feel them," Piccolo observed. He knew all of their kis by heart, and the Saiyans were the most identifiable. He could also feel the woman's ki, and wondered again at how she had flung him through several trees without actually moving. She had just looked at him, and BAM!, he had splinters all over his backside. He meant to pay her back for that.
"Can we over take them?" Krillin asked, moving up to Bulma, who was in the pilot's chair.

"Sit back down, fasten your seatbelt, and I'll show you!" Bulma declared firmly. She was bound and determined to get her family back, not to mention her friends. Barely waiting for Krillin to strap himself back down, Bulma kicked their ship into overdrive.

Their increased speed didn't go unnoticed, however. Warning alarms began screeching in Kari's ship, and her people began bringing up weapons.

"Persistent little insects," muttered one man at the nav.

"Lady Kari, the Earth ship is approaching at increased speed. They're after us," a second man said. Kari bit her lip thoughtfully.

"Try to out-maneuver them. If all else fails, we'll blow them out of the stars," Kari stated, and her people nodded.

Bulma blinked as the ship she was pursuing suddenly pulled an abrupt turn. "Oh ho, trying to lose us? Not likely! This baby is built for maneuverability!" Bulma grinned wickedly and followed. The ships seemed to do a crazy insect-like dance as they turned, spun, twisted, zigged, and zagged across the blackness of space.

"Bulma, the ship may be built for this, but my stomach isn't!" Krillin groaned as the ship did a barrel roll in the middle of a loop-de- loop.

"Or mine!" Yamcha grumbled.

"Sorry, guys!" Bulma sent them a slightly sorry look, then turned her full attention back to flying.

"Ma'am, this isn't working," one of Kari's people said. Kari herself looked a tinge green from her men's flying.

"No, it isn't," she agreed.

"GOTCHA!" Bulma hit a button on her console as a little blue light flashed. There was a whirring noise, and tether lines shot from the Capsule ship and attached to Kari's ship. "Bull's eye!" Bulma smirked in a way that was rather similar to the way her husband did when he was pleased. "The lines will anchor us to them."

"All right, let's board that ship and get the guys back!" Krillin said, and they quickly put on space suits. "Chi-chi, Bulma, you st-,"
"WE are going along!" Chi-chi snapped before Krillin could complete his suggestion. The two women were already in space suits and held their helmets under their arms.

"Um, I really don't think that's wise," Krillin offered, and cringed away from them, ready for the explosion that would be coming his way. Instead, he felt 18's hand on his shoulder.

"Krillin, they need to come. It was their families that were kidnaped," she instructed softly. Krillin sighed.

"Just try not to get in the crossfire," Piccolo muttered. He didn't care if they came or not.

"Come on, we're wasting time! They could disconnect the tethers at any moment!" Yamcha was standing at the airlock. They all snapped their helmets into place and went into the airlock, and then, out into space. Yamcha carried Bulma, Chi-chi clung to Tien, and 18 held onto Krillin. The Z Team used their kis to rocket them over to Kari's ship. A quick examination found the air lock, and Bulma hacked into the computer system. The door slid open, and they jumped inside. Once the outer door was closed, Bulma turned on the air in the airlock. When it was finally safe, they went into the main ship and took off their helmets.

"That way!" Piccolo ran down a corridor with the others right behind him. He could feel the Saiyans close by. They were all so intent on the kis of their friends, they didn't notice the thirty guards that were headed their way.

"Freeze!" one guard barked. They just sort of looked at him for a moment before they knocked him out of the way. The guards started firing, but Krillin, Piccolo, Tien and Chiao-Tzu disarmed them all in a matter of seconds. Many were knocked to the floor.

"Tell us where the Saiyans are, and we'll leave, nice and peaceful," Krillin offered.

"All right, they're in a room right by my quarters. Now, leave!" Kari suddenly walked down the hall and faced them.

"We meant with them," Krillin answered, and he and Piccolo blew out the wall next to them. Bulma and Chi-chi dashed through.

"Cute," Kari growled, and flung her hand out at them. They were hit with a wave of ki that knocked them all off their feet. She then pursued the two women through the hole. The guards, in a desperate attempt to help their leader, attacked the Z-Team head on. It proved to be a painful mistake. In a flurry of kicks and punches, the thirty guards were rendered unconscious. The Z Team followed all three of the women.

Bulma and Chi-chi ran through the holes their friends had made for them. The holes were meant to lead them to their families. Unfortunately, Kari knew exactly where they were going, and how to get there first. Bulma and Chi-chi were just climbing through the last hole when they saw Kari standing in front of them holding a music box in her hand, with the five hypnotized Saiyans at her back. The rest of the Z-Team caught up and stared.

"How did you. . .?!" Bulma sputtered.

"Please. I know this ship inside and out," Kari scoffed at them lightly.

"Goku! Gohan! Goten! Thank goodness you're all right!" Chi-chi moved forward and reached for her husband and sons, but they remained as still as statues. Kari struck her away.

"Weak, whimpering little fool," Kari hissed so softly that only Piccolo's sharp hearing caught it. Louder, she said "I'm allowing you to leave now. If I have to. . .I'll kill you."

"We are not leaving without our families!" Bulma snarled. "Vegeta! Trunks! Wake up! Come on, you're stronger than her mind control!"

"Actually, no, they're not. No Saiyan is. This box was built to control even the strongest willed Saiyans. There's no breaking it's hold," Kari smirked. The men and #18 were trying to move closer to attack. She glanced lightly at the Z-Team, and they were flung by her ki into the walls. Frankly, the hall was too narrow to hold a decent fight. There wasn't enough room to maneuver properly. They quickly decided to take out the walls as soon as they pulled themselves free of them.

"Bitch! Doing this to them after they helped you out of the woods!" Chi-chi yelled, tears in the corners of her eyes. "Let them go this instant!"

"Yeah! You have a lot of gall!" Bulma put her hands on her hips. Chi-chi suddenly dashed forward and slapped Kari full in the face, as she had once done to Super Majin Buu. She then grabbed the box, and tried to pry it from Kari's hands. Bulma jumped in to help, but Kari flung them both off with another ki wave.

"How troublesome! I'm getting tired of your whining. How do they put up with you?" Kari growled as she lifted Bulma and Chi-chi into the air with her ki. Piccolo was thunderstruck. The only people outside of himself, Goku, and Vegeta that he had ever seen who could control their ki like that was. . . Frieza and Cell. . . "Rest in Pieces." Kari began to focus her energy into a killing blow.

"GOKUUU!!" Chi-chi screamed in terror as the woman powered up.

"VEGETAA!!" Bulma howled at the same time.

"HELP!" Their voices rang together, and a glass barrier seemed to break in the minds of Goku and Vegeta. The music's hold on them was gone, and they flashed into motion, grabbing their wives and pulling them out of harm's way. Kari stared at them blankly.

"Im. . impossible! You can't break the music box's control!" Kari gasped.
"Yeah? Well, then, lets just take that problem out of the equation!" Vegeta snarled, and he and Goku lunged at her. Kari sidestepped them easily, and realized a second too late that the attack was a feint. Goku had pulled the box out of her hand as they had passed by. He smashed the device into junk between his hands. The children and Gohan then woke up.

"Huh?" they looked around.

"Hey! I can move again!" Gohan said, and Goten and Trunks seconded the comment.

"All right! Pay back time!" Trunks grinned as he looked at the startled Kari. Her face suddenly twisted with anger and frustration.

"OH NO! I've worked way too hard for far too long to lose now! My box may be gone, but you're all still coming with me!" Kari barked forcefully.

"Try and make us without your little mind control device!" Goten snapped, and they began powering up. Kari stood stiffly, and her power also began to rise.

"Let's make a little room," Piccolo growled, and destroyed the walls around him. The others also made a bit more room by removing some walls. However, none of them were aware of the extent of the damage. The ship's bulkheads creaked softly.

Goku and Vegeta flew at her again, and this time they meant it. They threw punches that would have ripped holes in a planet, but Kari simply caught them, deflected them, and delivered equally powerful blows. Goku swung a kick at her lower back, but she whipped around, caught his leg, and smashed her fist into his solar plexis, and then her elbow into his knee. Goku stumbled away as she turned her attention to Vegeta. ((Wow,)) Goku thought. ((She's good. . . and she's not overconfident like most strong fighters are. Huh? Hey. . .!)) Goku suddenly took note that his injuries weren't all that serious. She didn't want to kill them, just slow them down. He looked, and was surprised to see Kari holding Vegeta in a choke hold, Vegeta trying unsuccessfully to pry her fingers from his throat. He tried to push her arms apart by thrusting his own arms between hers, but her grip remained firm. At this point, Piccolo and the others stepped in, and so did a new group of guards. Kari nodded off the guards, and they hung back, awaiting her signal.

Piccolo roared as he unleashed a burst of ki at Kari's back. She dropped Vegeta and knocked the blast aside. Krillin leapt forward and punched at her, and in response she brought her leg up in a high and painful kick. Krillin spun away, and then attacked again. Kari flung a ki ball at him, but he dodged. Yamcha and Chiao-Tzu had taken up positions to protect Bulma and Chi-chi. As Kari fought off the Z team, she noticed the two women, and hit on a plan. #18 swung at her. Kari barely noticed as she grabbed 18's arm, and broke it. Goten suddenly flew at her, but she sidestepped gracefully and struck him across the back. Her speed and strength were incredible. The Z-team was starting to doubt their 'attack- one-at-a-time-so-it's-fair-since-she's-only-one-woman' tactic. Piccolo attacked again.

Trunks growled. This woman wasn't going to get away with hypnotizing his father, his best friend, his best friend's family, himself, and threatening his mother. He saw an opening as Kari struck Piccolo sharply upside the head. He lunged forward, intent on slamming his fist into the woman's stomach, hopefully breaking bone and doing damage to her internal organs. Unfortunately for the young warrior, Kari saw his attack coming, and hit him aside with a numbing blow.

The next few moments seem to happen in slow motion for the Z-Teamers, for as Trunks hit the wall and dented it, the jingling sound of dozens of gold bracelets hitting the ground filled the air. The Z-Teamers froze where they stood, staring at Kari and the fallen bracelets, their eyes widening to an impossible size. Kari's crew wasn't surprised at all, they already knew.

"But that's. . .that's impossible!!" Vegeta cried, as he continued to stare.

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Be here for Chapter 4: Kari is a WHAT?! The Surprising Revelation!